Azim Premji University presents its first ‘State of Working India’ report

The report finds that while wages in most sectors have grown steadily, caste and gender disparity remain high.

Wages have grown at around 3% per year, but 82% of male and 92% of female workers earn less than Rs.10,000 a month: Azim Premji Report

Azim Premji University presented its first State of Working India (SWI) report at the Bangalore International Centre on October 3
rd. The SWI report was released in New Delhi on September 25th. The report is available online at the University’s Centre for Sustainable Employment (CSE) website.

The State of Working India presents well-researched and analytically useful data on India’s labor market by bringing together researchers, journalists, civil society activists, and policymakers. The report compiles evidence from many different official surveys as well as field studies to shed light on the quantity of employment and unemployment, the sectors and industries that are creating jobs, the states that are performing better, the quality of jobs, and the effect of caste and gender disparities.

The aim of this initiative by Azim Premji University is to develop better public understanding and help guide policy measures to achieve universal employment with regular incomes for all. It also provides readily accessible statistics for research and teaching via the Azim Premji University CSE website.

The report finds that while wages in most sectors have grown steadily, caste and gender disparity remain high. Labour productivity has grown several times faster than wages. As a result, employers have benefitted far more from growth than workers. Employment generation has remained weak, and India has struggled to convert high rates of economic growth into good jobs, particularly for its educated youth.

‘Just and sustainable livelihood opportunities for all its citizens are critical for India. Azim Premji University’s State of Working India report is based on rigorous research and investigates a range of issues that can drive employment growth in the country, with equity and full inclusion. We see this report only as a first step, with deep, continuing and on-the-ground research required. Collaboration across institutions and sectors will be key for developing a robust and detailed understanding’ said Anurag Behar, Vice Chancellor, Azim Premji University
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Amit Basole, lead author of the report and faculty at Azim Premji University, noted that “the report analyses the structural problems that have prevented adequate employment generation over the past several decades, and does not limit itself to just the past few years.”

The key findings of the report are:

Jobless growth: India has struggled to convert its high rates of economic growth into good jobs. Currently, a 10% increase in GDP results in less than 1% increase in employment. The rate of unemployment among the youth and higher educated has reached 16%.

Revival in organised manufacturing: The past decade has been good for the performance of the organised manufacturing sector. Several industries (especially, big employers like knitwear, plastics, and footwear) have delivered on wage growth and job growth. In part, this is because workers are no longer being replaced by machines as fast as they were in the 1980s and 1990s.

Increased precarity: But work has also become more precarious in the organised sector. In place of permanent workers firms have engaged various forms of contract and trainee workers who perform the same work at a fraction of the wages.

Increased wages but much lower than any basic norm: There has been steady growth in wages (adjusted for inflation) for the past decade and a half. Most sectors, except agriculture, have reported an increase in real wages by 3% or more annually. However, monthly earnings continue to be low in general. 82 % of male and 92% of female workers earn less than Rs.10,000 a month.

Caste and gender disparities: Caste and gender disparities remain high. For example, women are 16% of all service sector workers, but 60% of domestic workers. Similarly, Scheduled Castes (SC) formed 18.5% of all workers, but 46% of total leather workers. On a positive note, the gender earnings gap is reducing over time.

The report proposes that the Union Government develop a National Employment Policy in close collaboration with the States, with the following considerations:

·The idea of employment guarantee has been growing in popularity across the world. With MGNREGA, India has been a leader in this trend and should build on its experience

·There is renewed interest in industrial policy and the policies such as wage subsidies and incentives for skilled workers.

·There is a need to examine successful state-level employment policies and learn from the diversity of state experiences.

·There is adequate availability of fiscal space to be used for public investment. Among other sectors, this is urgently needed in agriculture to raise the income floor in the economy

·There is a strong case for creating a Universal Basic Services (UBS) programme that invests in education, health, housing, and public transport and safety to create jobs, human capital, and public goods.